Australia shares post 7th day of gains; NZ also up

Reuters Staff

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Oct 19 (Reuters) - Australian shares trimmed early gains but still ended higher for a seventh straight session on Thursday, largely shrugging off data which showed China’s economic growth eased slightly in the third quarter.

Markets are more focused on whether Wall Street can continue its record-breaking run, which is boosting investors’ risk appetite for equities globally.

President Donald Trump’s drive to overhaul the U.S. tax code headed for a pivotal moment on Thursday, with Senate Republicans poised to approve a budget measure that would help them pass tax legislation without Democratic support.

The Senate is expected to vote on the budget resolution on Thursday.

“The market is still worried about what is potentially coming out of the United States, we’ve had a huge run ... and we’re seeing a bit of profit taking ahead of that,” said Mathan Somasundaram, a market portfolio strategist with Blue Ocean Equities.

Beijing has ordered some steel mills, smelters and factories in norther parts of the country to reduce production or shut altogether in coming months in its toughest action yet to reduce winter air pollution. That is expected to reduce its demand for raw materials but has raised worries about shortages of finished products, triggering wild swings in resources prices.

Investors were awaiting an announcement from the small New Zealand First Party later in the day on which major party it will support to form a coalition government, ending weeks of political limbo that have hurt the currency and business sentiment.

New Zealand First subsequently said it would throw its support behind the opposition Labour Party.

The telecom services sector led the gains on the index with Spark New Zealand Ltd ending 3 percent higher.